لَا تَثْرِيبَ عَلَيْكُمُ (No reproach upon you), that is, ` not to say much about taking a revenge of your injustices against me, on this day, I would not even blame you for it.& This much was the good news of forgiveness from his side which he let them hear. Then, he prayed for them before Allah Ta’ ala: يَغْفِرُ اللَّـهُ لَكُمْ ۖ وَهُوَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ (May Allah forgive you, and He is the most merciful of all the merciful). After that, he said: اذْهَبُوا بِقَمِيصِي هَـٰذَا فَأَلْقُوهُ عَلَىٰ وَجْهِ أَبِي يَأْتِ بَصِيرًا وَأْتُونِي بِأَهْلِكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ : ` Go with this shirt of mine and put it over the face of my father, and he will turn into a sighted man [ which will enable him to come here ]. And bring to me all your family [ so that all of us can get together, be happy, enjoy the blessings given by Allah and be grateful to Him ].& Points of Guidance We come to know of many injunctions, rulings, as well as guidelines, which are good to have in life: 1. First of all, the use of the expression: تَصَدَّقْ عَلَيْنَا (` tasaddaq ` alaina&: be charitable to us) in verse 88 raises a question as to how would Sada¬qah and Khairat (charity) become Halal (lawful) for the brothers of Sayy¬idna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) who are the progeny of prophets? Secondly, even if Sada¬qah could be taken as Halal, how would the act of asking for it become Halal? Even if the brothers of Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) were no prophets, he himself certainly was. Why did he not warn them against this error? A clear enough answer to this is that the word Sadaqah used here does not mean the real Sadaqah. In fact, the request for a concession in the transaction has been given the name of Sadaqah and Khairat - because, they had just never asked for a free supply of grains. Instead, they had offered ` a capital of very little worth.& And the essence of their request was that this ` capital of very little worth& be accepted in the spir¬it of remission given in such hard circumstances. Moreover, it is also pos¬sible that the unlawfulness of Sadaqah and Khairat (charity) for the pro¬geny of prophets may be exclusive to the Ummah of the Holy Prophet (صلی اللہ علیہ وآلہ وسلم) - as held by Mujahid from among Tafsir authorities. (Bayan a1-Qur&an) 2. The last sentence of verse 88: إِنَّ اللَّـهَ يَجْزِي الْمُتَصَدِّقِينَ (Surely, Allah rewards the charitable) tells us that Allah Ta` ala gives good return to those who spend in Sadaqah and Khairat (charity). But, there are details to it, that is, there is a general return for Sadaqah and Khairat which is received by everyone, believer or disbeliever, right here in the present world. That return comes in the form of the removal of disasters and hardships. Then, there is the return which is particularly attached to the &Akhirah (Hereafter), that is, the Jannah (Paradise). That is for the believers only. Since the addressee here is the ` Aziz of Misr - and the brothers of Yusuf (علیہ السلام) did not know at that time whether or not he was a be¬liever - therefore, they opted for a sentence which was general, and which included the return of the present world, as well as that of the Hereafter. (Bayan al-Qur&an) Besides, this being an address to the ` Aziz of Misr, the occasion obvi¬ously demanded that the address in this sentence should have been di¬rect, as: ` Allah will give you the best of return.& But, as his being a believ¬er was not known, therefore, the form of address used was general, and any special return for him was not mentioned. (Qurtubi) 3. The sentence: قَدْ مَنَّ اللَّـهُ عَلَيْنَا (Allah has been very kind to us) in verse 90 proves that, should one be in some distress or hardship, then, Allah Ta’ ala delivers one from these and showers him or her with his bless¬ings, now, after that, such a person should not talk about his past hardships anymore. Instead, one should remember nothing but this blessing and favour of Allah Ta` ala which one now has. After having been delivered from distress, and after having been blessed by Divine rewards, to continue crying over past hardships is ingratitude. Such an ungrateful person has been called: کَنُود (kanud) in the Holy Qur&an: إِنَّ الْإِنسَانَ لِرَبِّهِ لَكَنُودٌ (Truly, man is to his Lord, ungrateful - 100:6). The word, kanud, refers to a person who does not remember favours received, but does remember hardships faced. Therefore, Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) made no mention at this time of the hardships he had to undergo for a long time due to the actions of his brothers. Instead of that, he mentioned the blessings of Allah only. 4. The last sentence: إِنَّهُ مَن يَتَّقِ وَيَصْبِرْ, (Surely, whoever fears Allah and ob¬serves patience, then Allah does not waste the reward of the good-doers) in verse 90 tells us that Taqwa, that is, abstention from sins, and Sabr, that is, patience and fortitude, are two qualities which deliver one from every disaster and distress. The Holy Qur&an has said at several places that a person&s prosperity and success depend on these two qualities, for example: وَإِن تَصْبِرُوا وَتَتَّقُوا لَا يَضُرُّكُمْ كَيْدُهُمْ شَيْئًا ، that is, ` if you keep patience and fear Allah, their cunning shall not harm you at all - 3:120.& A surface view of the verse here may suggest that Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) is claiming to be God-fearing and patient in the sense that it was because of his Taqwa and Sabr that he was blessed with deliverance from difficulties and rewarded with high ranks. But, no one can claim Taqwa for himself. It is prohibited by definite statements in the Holy Qur&an, for example: فَلَا تُزَكُّوا أَنفُسَكُمْ ۖ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَنِ اتَّقَىٰ (Therefore do not claim purity for yourself: He knows best who it is that guards against evil - 53:32). But, in reality, there is no claim here. Instead, this is a confession of the bless¬ings and favours of Allah Ta’ ala, for He first gave him the Taufiq of Sabr and Taqwa and then, through it, came all blessings from Him. The declaration: لَا تَثْرِيبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْيَوْمَ (No reproach upon you today) in verse 92 has been made from the highest level of good morals whereby the oppressor was not only forgiven, but spared from reproach too.
